The present invention relates to dual character dolls having fastening means located at the hands thereof enabling such dolls to be attached to other, similar dolls to form a family.
Dual character dolls are known. U.S. Pat. No. 3,791,068 discloses a dual face illuminated doll preferably made of a transluscent flesh colored resilient plastic material, having a hollow body, legs and arms, and a plurality of interchangeable heads representing an assortment of different persons. The body is provided with electric power means for lighting a bulb which is mounted on the neck of the body and extends into the hollow of any head that might be mounted thereon. Upon switching on the light, the head glows more or less brightly depending on the power of the light bulb and the transparency of the flesh colored plastic material. The dual characters disclosed include doctor, nurse, mother, sister or brother, or other persons.
Other patents which disclose dual faced dolls include U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,289,715 and 1,099,208.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,249,337 discloses a breast feeding doll set comprising a mother doll and a baby doll. The mother doll is provided with complimentary fasteners on the extremities of the arms to lock the arms about the baby doll to hold the baby doll against the mother doll. The fasteners may be Velcro.RTM. hook and loop type fasteners, snaps or other suitable fastening means.
Play, to a child, may be defined as the child's mode of expression. An adult may view a child's non-verbal play to gain insight into the child's unconscious and his perceptions about life as he mimics the behavior of adults and actual events.
The dominant theme of a child's pre-school play is Dramatic Play, i.e. the taking on of roles and the acting out of themes drawn from the child's immediate environment. As the child recognizes his expanding universe, his play themes grow to encompass that universe and to include his fantasies.
Dramatic Play is an important source for learning role identification. This play is often modeled from the behavior of familiar adults. During this type of play the child can use his "power" to design, change and influence his environment. Since he has always been subjected to the approaches and behavior of others, this "power" gives him a new sense of freedom and autonomy.
As the child constructs scenes during play, he may reveal his perceptions of his environment. Because the child's environment is dictated to a large extent by his extended family, it is reasonable to conclude that he feels a variety of emotions towards these people. For this reason, a family of dolls would act as a tool in the child's expression of his feelings. By owning a doll family, the child will be able to act out these incidents with all the significant players at hand.
A family of dolls can be used as an educational tool for reinactment of proposed, present or past events. For example, psychological research has proven that children may exhibit their controlled personalities (fear, hostility, conflict, love) by transference of these feelings to those "dolly" is experiencing.
For example, a mother preparing her child for a medical procedure may help the child express his feelings by watching his play with a nurse and/or doctor doll.
Acting as the dolls' voices, parents can explain medical procedures and events that will happen to the child through a doll and see and hear how the child reacts. The child may want to perform a procedure on the dolls also, i.e. give the doctor doll a shot.
Children who are most likely to have emotional problems from experiences like this are those who fail to establish positive relations with the nurse and doctor, who withdraw from the situation or react with panic to it because they can't express their feelings about the invasive procedure or medical environment.